The adventure started at N/a’ankuse on December 7. We arrived exhausted but were thrilled to realize that the wonderful staff with the booking department had put us all in a Villa rather than tents. We were given a tour of the surroundings where the Lapa was (where we would gather for meals), and the tiny coffee/gift shop. We also picked our uniforms (however the one size does not fit all). Well as one would expect it was very hot in Africa in the summertime. We had the most amazing view from our villa overlooking some mountains and parts of the sanctuary where we would see an abundance of wildlife throughout our stay there. Since our arrival was late in the week the staff assign groups on Monday for the week, or weeks.
For Friday we had orientation in the morning with Heidi. She talked about how the following days would play out, well mostly. Friday afternoon we were instructed to go to the animal prep feeding area where we were broken up into multiple groups for animal duties. The first task was Baboon walk.
Saturday was another busy day as we were put into another set of random groups wherever extra hands were needed for animal care. There was not strong communication with the staff and volunteers at this point, but we did small animal feeding and meal prep. This is where we feed the small animals at the sanctuary and prep their meals for Sunday and Monday.
Monday December 11th, the 9 of us were broken into two groups we were the Cheetah group and Hyena group. From here we had a better understanding of how the remaining days would play out as far as the tasks assigned and who our staff members were. Mihka (the veterinary on staff) offered to give us a talk about the risks and necessities of transporting / and sedating wildlife to enter, exit and treat the animals in sanctuary or reserve.
We learned the history of all 3 of the male elephants at the reserve and they all wore GPS collars. The lions also wore GPS collars. We were able to identify the Rhinos by ear notches and the Anti-poaching unit takes their job very seriously. All of the animals at the sanctuary are altered so there is no animals able to reproduce. The amount of work that goes into protecting and caring for these animals is more than one can imagine unless you’re there to experience it. We met some fellow volunteers that were amazing humans.
-Candace, SPC Namibia Study Abroad Program 2023 Participant